Process for the treatment of fabrics and the like



Patented Apr. 7, 1925.

RAYMOND F. BACO'N, OF NEW YORK, AND CLEO rATE NT OFFICE.

n. KIDWELL, on NEW BRIGHTON,

NEW YORK, ASSIGNORS T0 JOHN M. VAN HEUSEN, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS. PROCESS FOR THE TREATMENT OF FABRICS AND THE LIKE.

No Drawing,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, RAYMOND F. BAooN, residing in New York city, county and State of New York, and Chico ll. Kmwnnn, residing at New Brighton, Richmond County, State of New York, both citizens of the United States, have jointly invented new and useful Improvements in Processes for the '.lreatmeut of Fabrics and the like, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to the treatment of cloth fabric or other fibrous materials.

The primary object of the invention is to provide amethod of so treating a fabric or similar material that cut edges thereof will not fray or ravel. W

Our invention contg mflates the treatment either of the edgesof the fabric after it has been cut, or of the fabric before it. has been out. In the latter case we may treat the whole of the fabric or only a narrow zone including the proposed line of cut. v

Broadly stated, our invention comprises first, subjecting the fabric or other material, or the portion thereof which it is desired to treat, to the action of an acid, and then washing out the acid with water or an alkaline solution or both. \Ve have found that by utiliz'ag acid of the proper strength and by subjecting the fabric to its action for the proper length of time and within the proper range of temperature, the fabric so treated will, in effect, be selvaged. That is to say, if it is a cut edge of the fabric which is treated, it will not ravel or fray, and if it. is the whole or a portion of apiece of fabric that is treated, cut edges formed by cuts made through the treated portions will not ravel or fray.

The strength of the acid used, and the length of time of the acid treatment vary with the particular material treated. So also the particular method of subjecting the material to the acid may vary widely. Accordingly we shall not endeavor herein to describe all of the ways in which our invention may be practiced. But ,in order that those skilled in the art may understand the invention fully and may apply it to any desired material, we will for purposes of illustration merely, and not with the intention of limiting the scope of the invention in any respect, describe oneway in which we have applied the invention to one type of fabric with excellent results.

Application filed March 16, 1922. Serial N... 544,320.

operation by a set of warp thrcads kiio\vn7as"' the hinder or interweave threadsj 'llie fabric thus 'formed is compact and possesses a considerable degree of inherent stiffness or set. For this particular fabric we have found that sulphuric acid of a strength of 70% to 80% and preferably 73% to "75% by weight iigtingnpon the fabric for approxima'tely one minute at ordinary room temperature, gives the desired results. It is, of course, necessary that the acid 'act upon all of the threads of the fabric at. all points, both interior and exterior. In order 'to bring aboitt this result with the tightly woven fabric under consideration it is necessary to force the acid through the fabric. This may be done in many ways, as, for example, by pressure or by suction. o have found it convenient to draw the acid through the fabric, or the edge or zone thereof to be treated, by suction. been carried on for approximately one minute the fabric is washed with water. After that washing has been completed we preferably give the fabric a second washing in an alkaline solution in order to make sure that the acid has been entirely removed. Either one of these; washings, if thorough,

may be found to he sutlicicnt. however.

After the acid has been completely washed out; the fabric may be dried in any desired manner and is then ready for use. However, if the fabric is treated before cutting and it is found necessary or desirable to cut the fabric while it is still wet, this may be done as the selvage effect will have beer. produced to a considerable degree even before the initial drying of the fabric has taken place. As we have stated above, in carrying out our invention the cut edge of the fabric may be treated after being cut, or the fabric as a whole, or that part of it contiguous to the proposed cut may be treated before the cut is made. lVe prefer the latter procedure, for the reason that many types of fabric commence to fray .almost immediately upon being cut. \Vhe e'it is desired to out After this treatment has,

or stamp from a piece of fabric a number of pieces, such for example as collar blanks, we find it most economical to treat the fabric only within a narrow zone contiguous to the line or lines of the cuts to be made. After the treatment has been completed the cutting or stamping may be done, and since the portions of the fabric through which the cuts are made have previously been treated or selvaged, the cut edges produced by the cutting will not ravel or fray.

It is to be understood that our invention is not limited to the treatment of any particular type of fabric, or to the use of any particular acid, or of acid of any particular strength, or to an acid treatment extending for any particular length of time or at any particular temperature. In general it may be said that thestrongcr the acid and the longer it is allowed to act upon the fabric, the stronger will be its effect. If the effect is too strong the fabric will be weakened and the selvaging may not be as effective as is desired. So also if the acid is too weak or it does not a ten the fabric for a long enonglrtime, the selvaging will be deficient:

/ With the example given above, for one particular type of fabric, it is believed that those skilled in the art can readily determine the proper acid strength and the proper time and temperature of treatment for any material which it is desired to selvage.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that our invention may be used to great ad-. vantage in almost all arts where cut fabric or similar material is employed. In the manufacture of wearing apparel such as collars, for example, the treatment of the fabric in the mannerdescribed makes unnecessary the hemming of the edges. If a hem is desired, however, for the sake of appearance, such a hem may be made by merely folding the edge over once and sewing it. Heretofore when collars have been made of such heavy fabric that it has seemed undesirable to fold over the edges twice in making a scam, an extra tape has sometimes been employed to overlie and encompass the cut edge of the singly turned scam in order to prevent it from fraying. Such an expedient is shown, for example, in Van Heusen Patent No. 1,254,294. It has also been proposed to overstitch the cut edge to prevent it from fraying. Our invention obviates the necessity for either of these, or similar expedients, and as a result effects marked economy in the production of such articles. Similarly it will effect great economies in the cost of production of other articles made of cut fabric or analogous material.

In the appended claims we have used the term selvaging broadly and by it we intend to include the rendering of the whole or a portion of a piece of fabric which is to be cut, as well as the cut edges of fabric, nonfraying.

It will be obvious from the foregoing description that many changes may be made in the exact description of the details ofoperation employed without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

What we claim is 1. The method of selvedging multiple plyinterwoven cotton fabric which consists in treating those portions thereof to be sclvedged with an acidfsolution comprising 73 to 75 ,per cent by weight of sulphuric acid for a period of about one minute at ordinary room temperature, and then completely removing the acid.

2. The method of treating cotton fabric which is to befcut so that when out its edges will not fray which consists in subjecting the fabric along the line of the proposed cut to the action of concentrated sulphuric acid, allowing the action to contiue until all the threads in the treated portion have beerli modified, and then washing out the am 3. The method of treating multiple ply. interwoven cotton fabric which isto be cut so that when out its edges will notfray, which consists in subjecting the multiple ply interwoven fabric along the line of the proposed cut to the action of concentrated sulphuric acid, allowing the action to continue until all the threads in the treated portion have been modified, and then washing out the acid.

4. The method of selvedging cotton fabric which consists in saturating the portion thereof to be selvedged with sulphuric acid of a strength in excess of 65 per cent by weight, allowing the action of the acid to continue until all the threads in the portion to be selvedged have been modified, and then washing out the acid.

5. The method of selvedging cotton fabric which consists in thoroughly saturating the portions thereof to be sclvedged with sulphuric acid, the acid being of sullicicnt strength and being allowed to act upon the threads of the fabric for a sufficient length of time to produce the selvedging effect, and then washing out the acid.

6. The method of selvedging multiple ply interwoven cotton fabric which consists in thoroughly saturating the portions thereof to be selvedged with sulphuric acid, the acid being of sufficient strength and being allowed to act u on the threads of the fabric for a sufficient ength of time to produce the selvedging effect, and then washing out the acid.

RAYMOND F. BACON. CLEO I-I. KIDWELL. 

